GM steps up with airbag recall
If someone asked you what it would take for embattled General Motors to get back into the good graces of customers after their years-long recall battle, it’s likely the last thing that would come to mind is: “another recall.” But that may be exactly the lever GM needs to begin to regain its reputation. Recently, the Associated Press announced General Motors would recall more than four million vehicles, most made in the United States, in order to fix a defective airbag that has already killed at least one person and injured three others. The impacted models were manufactured under the Buick, Chevrolet, GMC, and Cadillac brands in model years 2014–17. While specific affected owners will receive notification directly from GM, the widespread announcement is exactly the opposite tack GM tried with the faulty ignition switch debacle several years back that not only claimed dozens of lives but also drastically damaged GM’s reputation among the American car-buying public. The description of the problem might be a bit technical for average drivers. As described by the Associated Press: “The company said Friday that in rare cases, the car’s sensing and diagnostic module — a tiny computer that senses what the vehicle is doing and controls airbag deployment — can go into test mode. If that happens, the front air bags won’t inflate in a crash and the seat belt pretensioners may not tighten up around occupants to help prevent injuries…”
However, the fact that the company is coming out and owning up before anyone else is injured is a big deal, and that’s what’s likely to stick out to consumers. Consumer confidence as a meta aggregate is rarely tied up in the details. It’s much more concerned with the essence or “feel” of the story. Code words are established in narratives, and serve as stand-ins for the actual information, that may or may not ever be consumed. In this case, it’s likely most consumers won’t get bogged down in the details. They will hear about a problem, and then hear that the company is stepping up to take care of it. This point-counterpoint will resonate with most people as a company fixing a mistake … and “mistakes happen” so you should own up to it. In this, GM appears to be owning up, which should begin to re-establish some consumer confidence. It won’t repair all the damage from the previous scandal, but it should move more consumers toward a more favorable view of the automaker and its brands. Phil Shawe is the Co-Founder and Co-CEO of TransPerfect.